Vampire Valentines
by purplegiraffe17
Summary: It's Valentine's Day at the Moroi Royal Court and Dimitri and Christian have a special surprise planned for Rose and Lissa. This takes place after Last Sacrifice.
1. Chapter 1

**I understand that in this particular time frame of post-Last Sacrifice, it's not February, but let's just pretend! (:**

_Victor Dashkov's green eyes dance mercilessly in the moonlight. He holds Lissa to his chest, his knife barely piercing the skin of her neck. Drops of blood splatter on the ground in front of her, and I can feel the pain, the pain of the knife going deeper and deeper in to her skin. _

"_Stop!" I scream, "Stop! I'll do anything. Please, just let her go." _

_Victor laughs, the sound booming in to the night sky, just as dark and empty as his heart, "It's a life for a life, you killed me, now I shall take her. Nothing you can do about it." He squeezes her neck harder, the knife going deeper into her skin. _

_I attack. _

_But as soon as I jump to grab at Victor, a large force barrels in to me, sending me flying off away from Victor. I gasp for breath and when I stand up, I find myself staring at pitiless red eyes, and a large duster. _Dimitri._ Or at least strigoi Dimitri. My breath catches, like it always does in front of him, regardless strigoi or dhampir, and with my hesitation, he swings a punch at my face. _

"_What are you doing?" I yell at Dimitri, and in the distance I hear Lissa screaming, screaming as blood drains out of her. _

I gasp awake, clawing at my blankets, my throat dry from screaming. I take in my surroundings, the nightstand, window overlooking the fountain, my closet, my giant fluffy bed, and flop back down on to the mattress. _Just a dream Rose, just a dream._ These nightmares have been occurring for a while since I broke my bond with Lissa, and she told me it's probably some of the left over darkness from it. Everything that's happened in the past year has impacted me a lot, so I just need some time to sort things out in my mind.

Usually, Dimitri's next to me, cradling me in the arms when I wake up screaming in the middle of the night, but three days ago, he and Christian left to visit Moravian College. I know, Christian, _at college._

After Lissa became queen, he finaly realized that he had to do something with life, and pursue college, so he's visiting Moravian, and will attend it starting next month. It's much easier to get in to that Lehigh, but also extremely close so he and Lissa can still be together.

Wherever Christian goes, Dimitri follows, and wherever Lissa goes, I follow, so that means next month, I'll be close to Dimitri even when Lissa isn't at court.

A gentle knock on my door breaks my reverie, and I get out of bed to open it to find a rarely disheveled Lissa. Her blonde hair sticks up at random places, and she's still in her pink pajama pants.

"What's up?" I say, not sure what was going on. I'm still not used to not knowing how Lissa is feeling.

"It's February 14th!" Lissa exclaims.

"And…?"

"Oh god, Rose! It's Valentine's Day!"

This makes me laugh. After everything Lissa and I have been through, this is the one thing she cares about.

"So…?"

"So?" Lissa throws her hands up in desperation, "I've been so drowned in Royal business and Lehigh homework that I've completely forgotten!"

"It's okay!" I say, trying to calm Lissa down, all the stress still gets to her and it still hurts me that I can't help her get through it, "Christian won't be back for another two days."

"I know, but I feel like I should send him something, it's getting in the Valentine's Day spirit! You should send something to Dimitri too."

An image of Dimitri carrying a giant teddy bear and chocolates floods my mind.

"Ah, no." Maybe a teddy bear holding a stake.

"Oh come on, look, lets meet at the fountain in fifteen, there must be something we can buy for them, and we can spend the rest of today together. I think I need to take a breather from everything anyway," Lissa explains and before I can say anything, she leaves to her room, two doors over.

I shut my door and groan, but at least whatever sappy romantic "fun" Lissa is planning, it will also help her with relieving her stress.

Fifteen minutes later, I meet Lissa at the fountain.

"Okay, I told Ariana to help me handle all the Royal meetings and everything, I am taking this day _off._"

I smile, "So where are we headed?" I turn to Lissa, but she's concentrated on roll of parchment, taped with a heart sticker, on the ground in front of us.

"What's that?" I ask.

Lissa shrugs and bends to pick it up, but I bat her hand away and pick up the roll instead. "No, it might be something dangerous, I'll take it."

Lissa rolls her eyes, "Fine, open it! What is it?"

I open the parchment to find familiar handwriting scrawled across.

To Lissa and Rose,

Happy Valentine's Day!

Don't worry, we haven't forgotten about you guys on this special occasion. In fact, we already have something planned out, so follow the clues in each note, and it will lead you to a special surprise!

Clue 1: This one's for you Rose, I made the biggest mistake of my life here.

Love,

Christian and Dimitri

"Oh my god," Lissa and I mutter at the same time. This time, I don't need the bond to feel Lissa's excitement. It's palpable as her face lights up with a smile.

"Where is the place, Rose, where?" Lissa exclaims, tugging on my jacket sleeve.

_The biggest mistake of my life._ I think back to everything that's happened to Dimitri and me, the time I spent incredulous that our love could end, and I immediately know.

"The church."

"The church?" Lissa asks in disbelief.

"Yeah, the church." I say, not wanting to divulge anymore.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Lissa cries, literally dragging me to the church, "Oh, and this is Dimitri's handwriting, right? Christian's looks awfully like yours."

Lissa says the last part like it's the worst criticism you could give to someone, and I sigh, "That's Dimitri being perfect as always."


	2. Chapter 2

**This chapter's a bit short, but I'll pick it up next chapter… Thanks for the support guys. I love reviews! And if you have any ideas of spots for clues, please tell me and I'll try to use them! **

It felt like a long time before we reached the church with Lissa going on and on about how romantic this whole thing was, and though I didn't want to admit it. I thought so too. _This must be what a normal teenage girl feels like_, I think, all butterflies in stomach and bouncy.

The church was empty as Lissa and I creaked open the door to look around. We walked in and I shiver. _Strigoi set on killing me doesn't scare me, but empty churches do._ I walk to the back of the seats, to where Dimitri had broken my heart, and I can't believe how long time ago it seems, even though it's only been a few months.

Scanning the seats we occupied that day, the event flashes quickly in my mind, his harsh words that his love for me had faded, the sadness that drowned me, and I quickly stop my flashback—my eyes had began to tear up.

_I love you Dimitri, and love forgives all. _

"Found it!" I yell to Lissa, who's looking under a seat a few feet away from mine. I pick up a roll of parchment like the one with the first clue from under the seat and carefully unravel it.

Dear Lissa and Rose,

Rose, what I said that day still remains one of my greatest regrets, and I'm working on forgiving myself for everything I've done to you—including that. It still amazes me how easily you forgive me, even when I don't think I deserve it.

Clue 2: This one's for you Lissa, Christian says this is the site of the world's greatest explosion, planned by the smartest person he knows.

Love,

Christian and Dimitri

"The exploding statues!" Lissa exclaims with a smile. I remember it from when I was in her head. It was when Lissa and co. broke me out of jail.

"The whole thing was your plan?"

Lissa blushes, "Not the _whole_ thing, Christian's being modest, he planned a lot of it, Abe did too."

"Christian… modest?" I ask, "Not two words I commonly associate together."

Lissa rolls her eyes, "Whatever, let's just go to the statues… well, pedestals considering we blasted the statues to smithereens."


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Hope you guys enjoy this chapter! I'll be releasing the next and final one on Valentine's Day! (in honor of it) so see you then! (:**

* * *

As we headed toward the statues (or pedestals,) Lissa was showered with Valentine's Day gifts from her "loyal subjects." There was so much that we had to stop by her room to drop off all the balloons and teddy bears, in which we were greeted with an entire room full of even more gifts that people dropped by her room.

"So many admirers, Lissa, does Christian ever feel… insecure?" I tease as I open yet another box of chocolates and take out the raspberry filled ones, my favorite. Lissa throws a teddy bear at me, which I dodge, of course.

"Look, this one's from Charles in Wyoming," I say as I take out and open a card from the bottom of the chocolates, "It reads, 'Your majesty, I thank you for the service you provide to the Moroi world, and I hope you know that I have stood behind you one hundred percent through the electing process, and now. You will bring the dawn of a new era, and I am forever grateful. Happy Valentine's Day, I share my love.'"

Lissa has a surprised look on her face.

"Hmmm," I wonder out loud, "I wonder if this Charles from Wyoming is any cute. The name Charles usually fits hot people."

At this, Lissa throws another teddy bear and gets back to organizing all her gifts.

When she's finally done, we grab a bite from the café, my "bite" being two bear claws, and Lissa's being a coffee and fruit cup, and head back to the statues.

The court just recently took away the fences that were up as they cleared up the mess made with the explosion. In the statues' place were now two shiny pedestals reading Russian words that I don't understand.

"Okay," Lissa sighs, looking at the pedestals as if seeing the ghosts of the formidable statues that were once there. Or maybe she did, you never knew with spirit users. "I'll look around this one," Lissa points to the right one and then the left, "And you look around this one."

I nod, and pretty soon, Lissa shouts at me, waving a parchment roll in her hand. "They put the roll in the _exact_ place we planted the bombs."

I smile weakly, still a little disgruntled for not being a part of my prison breakout. Lissa opens up the roll:

Dear Lissa and Rose,

Lissa, you're beautiful, and not just smart, but badass smart too. It's one of the reasons why I'm forever wondering how someone was born so perfect. And Thanks for the explosion, one of the greatest moments of my life.

Clue 3: This one will lead you guys to the finale… Christian says the word surprise brings people's hopes up too much and finale sounds better. The clue is for both of you, this is where everything changed.

Love,

Christian and Dimitri

Lissa and I both look up from the parchment with worried smiles.

"Where everything changed?" I asked a bit irritated, all these clues were making my brain, hardwired for action, tired.

"I'm guessing it's where you exposed Tasha," Lissa says dejectedly, her face pensive and probably thinking back to that day. I absently touch my chest, where a jagged scar ran across.

Lissa was right, that was where Christian learned his aunt was a murderer the whole time, where Tasha herself shot me in the chest, where I threw myself to save Lissa, and where Dimitri had the chance to choose to save one of us.

"So we're going back to the ballroom?"

"Yep," Lissa sighs and we head toward the main building.

The surprise, finale, whatever it is had better be good, I hate that place.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Happy Valentine's Day, guys! Love the reviews (: Thanks, btw, for the information on the ballroom. Unlike me, I hope you guys spent the day with someone special, and enjoy the last chapter! **

The problem with Valentine's Day is the pink.

And the love and happiness and general fluffiness. When Lissa and I were running in the human world, I remember all the teddy bears and chocolates and roses and cards I saw. Well, it's the same in the Moroi world, but ten times worse.

Another problem is when the person you're spending it with is the sappy romantic type. Getting to the main building took forever with Lissa stopping at random shops to admire the "pretty flowers" and other related items.

The store owners enjoyed Lissa's company, not only was she the queen, but wherever she went, flowers looking droopy immediately perked up. Lissa was getting better with her magic, but she still often had to fight the urge to cure everything she saw. It was the only way to keep the darkness from her head.

"Do you think I'd be able to preserve some flowers until Christian gets back?" Lissa asks. "I need to get him something."

"I'm sure you can just buy flowers then. Flowers are sold all the time."

"But they won't be in all these colors." Lissa sounds overwhelmed.

"Are you sure you want to give Christian flowers?" I ask skeptically.

Lissa laughs, as if for the first time imagining the sight of Christian holding a bouquet of pink roses. "Okay, you're right, that's weird."

"Come on, let's just go to the ballroom. Just award him with some sex or something as a gift. He'll definitely love that."

Lissa hits my arm and it was quite painful, considering she never lifted a weight.

"Hey, not like you haven't done it before," I say. If one good thing came from not having the bond, it was that I wasn't able to intrude in on Lissa's love life anymore… it was just too awkward.

"You suck," Lissa mutters as we walk up to the grand doors that lead to the Royal Ballroom. I hated to admit it, but I was a nervous wreck. Normally calm and dangerous Rose turned in to hyperventilating, girly Rose. (Not a common occurrence)

Lissa touches her hand to the cool metal handle on the large oak double doors and I immediately place my hand on hers to stop her. "Wait, Lissa. What if there's like a room of balloons in there and we open the door and they all escape and it clogs up the atmosphere or something? It may possibly end the world."

Lissa gave me a strange look, and my mind buzzed, not even sure what I had just said. Anything to stop Lissa from opening that door.

"Um, that's impossible. The balloons can only—," Lissa pauses and understanding floods her expression, "Oh my gosh, Rose Hathaway, for _once_ in her life, is scared. And possibly flattered."

"What?" I say, voice unnaturally high.

"You know what I'm talking about, come on. I'm pretty sure it's just like a room of gifts or something." Which was an overstatement.

We opened the doors to nothing. Well, there was still the usual stage and stacked chairs and grand chandeliers, but nothing significant. There was an eerie silence in the large ballroom as I turned to look at Lissa who was equally surprised.

"Nothing?" I cry, flinging my arms to gesture at the empty ballroom.

"Maybe it's not the ballroom, maybe everything changed somewhere else," Lissa reasons after a moment of silence.

"Or those clues were just a bunch of crap. Did someone trick us?"

"I don't know, maybe there's like a gift or something at the exact place it happened, where you got shot."

"I'm not even sure," I say, looking around, "It was really all a blur."

"It was here," Lissa announces after she walks to a spot near the back of the room on the left.

"Is there a giant stain of my blood or something?"

"No, but I would know where I had thought my best friend in the world was going to die."

No witty comment for that. I saunter over and we look around for some sort of a gift when we hear a squeak and a door in the side of the ballroom opens.

"Christian?" Lissa asks incredulously. He steps out in to the ballroom, his two icy blue eyes looking surprised at us, but probably not as stunned as we looked.

He regards us one more time, then quickly leaves the room and shuts the door. Lissa and I share a look and we run after him to the door when it suddenly opens in front of us and out steps Christian… followed by Dimitri.

"Happy Valentine's Day!" They yell together before Lissa and I can do anything. I notice flour stains on both Dimitri and Christian's faces and clothing. Poor Dimitri's duster was flecked with spots of white, so much that he somewhat resembled a Dalmatian. Christian sported a black V-neck equally spotted so much in white that together, Dimitri and Christian resembled a pair of Dalmatians.

"What's going on?" Lissa and I ask at the same time. What were they doing at the Court?

"I told you they'd be here earlier," Dimitri says to Christian, completely disregarding Lissa's and my complaints. Was that egg yolk on Dimitri's shoe?

"Sorry," Christian says, sounding not at all apologetic, "but I just thought that it would take longer with Lissa getting a bunch of gifts, her royal duties, and she'd probably get distracted with a lot of the Valentine's Day stuff."

Christian was fairly close to the truth.

"And I _told_ you that Rose would have them be quicker. She's very efficient, and not a big fan of all the sappy Valentine's Day stuff," Dimitri argues to Christian. _Ah,_ he knew me so well.

"Excuse me, can someone please explain to us what's going on?" Lissa exclaims, her hand on Christian's shoulder.

Christian sighs, "We wanted to surprised you with like dinner, thinking you guys would get here exactly in time for that, but obviously, you guys came before that."

"Okay, but first explain why you guys are _here_," Lissa says.

"Oh, we planned this long ago and the trip is actually only three days, but we told you guys it was longer to do this surprise—," Christian explains.

"But it's not really a surprise anymore," I finish for him and he nods. Dimitri stands next to him looking genuinely dejected.

"Hold on," I say, looking to lighten the mood, "you guys _cooked_?"

Dimitri grins, "Actually, _I_ cooked, since Christian has never touched a spatula in his life."

Christian rolls his eyes, "And we both tried to bake a cake but, well," He gestures down at his and Dimitri's spotted clothing.

I turned to Lissa whose eyes looked watery, yet a smile plastered her face, "Oh my gosh, Christian, thank you so much for this." She jumped in to Christian's arms.

I laugh and look to Dimitri, his brown eyes consistently causing me to lose all focus. And I step on my toes to wrap my arms around his neck and pull him toward me. "I love you," I say, and then stop. I had never said those words to him. And Dimitri realizes too because he freezes for a second, and then pulls out of my embrace and cradles my face in his hands.

"I love you too." He says, his brown eyes meeting mine, and we kiss. Our love for each other was undoubtedly a given, but I still basked in the delight of those three words.

"Hey, get a room," Christian says, interrupting our kiss. He has his arm swung around Lissa who gives me a knowing smile.

"Gladly," I say, grabbing Dimitri's hand in an attempt to leave when both Christian and Dimitri stop me.

"At least get through dinner first."

"Fine," I say, although I wanted nothing more than to be in Dimitri's arms. Dinner seemed like a long time.

"I'm going to see if we can just buy a cake at the café," Christian announces, "I'll be back in a few minutes and we can have dinner."

"Oh!" Lissa exclaims, "I saw this really pretty one with pink roses and this cute—,"

"Okay," Christian interrupts, "We'll get it, let's go." And they disappear out the ballroom back to the café.

I turn back to Dimitri, "I've never had your cooking," I say wryly.

"It's heaven."

I laugh, and Dimitri takes out a glistening silver stake with a giant red bow wrapped around the middle from his back pocket and hands it to me.

"Happy Valentine's Day," He says.

"Thanks, but—,"

"It's not just a normal stake, read it."

I take the stake, untie the bow, and touch my fingers against the cool, smoothness of the stake and read the words carved on it, "Beauty is all I see. You are all I see."

I gasp, and I don't mind being hyperventilating, girly Rose as tears spill from my eyes. I wrap my arms around Dimitri, my tears dropping on to his duster.

"Where'd you get this?" I ask, finally letting him go.

He wipes a tear from my cheek, "Secret."

I roll my eyes, "You already have the mysterious demeanor down with your clothing choice and size."

"But I also plan on being a Zen master, to give you more wisdom, and they never reveal their secrets," Dimitri says, smiling.

I laugh, "Sorry I didn't get you anything."

"You didn't have to, Rose. You're really all I need."

"And the occasional Strigoi."

"Oh yes, and that."


End file.
